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The Indianapolis Zoo has acquired two small properties west of the facility’s existing 64-acre footprint and earmarked them for possible future use.
The contiguous parcels at 1502 W. Washington St. and 16 N. Harding St. were acquired from Magnet, Indiana-based Dilbone Properties LLC, according to state property record filings. The properties total just over one-half acre and were purchased for $750,000.
The zoo quietly purchased the parcels—home to Carreto Auto Repair and Zimmer Welding LLC, respectively—in late 2024. According to the state’s property sale record, the planned use for the land is “expansion of the zoo,” although no additional information was provided.
Jake Oakman, Indianapolis Zoological Society Inc.‘s vice president of external communications, told IBJ that the purchase came after the zoo was approached by Dilbone. There are no immediate plans for expansion, but the board approved the purchase given its proximity to other land already owned by the organization, he said
“The land is adjacent to property the zoo already owns that is used for overflow staff parking, administrative space, and offsite storage,” Oakman said in written statement. “The zoo has no plans for the land purchased last year. Acquiring land adjacent to property we already own gives the organization flexibility in the future.”
The newly acquired land is just south of two zoo-owned parcels totaling more than two acres bordered by West Market Street to the north, Harding Street to the west, West Court Street to the south and North White River Parkway West Drive to the east. Those properties, generally known as the west annex by Indianapolis Zoo staff, are home to the organization’s information technology department, a small amount of overflow parking and outdoor storage.
Oakman said the purchase gives the zoo “long-term flexibility if we wanted to use it, but we have no plans at this time” to continue adding to its operational footprint.
IBJ contacted Carreto Auto Repair by phone on Tuesday and spoke to someone who said they worked for the shop but did not provide their name. The person said the shop was made aware of the property sale but will remain open for the foreseeable future.
An email requesting comment that was sent to Jeff Dilbone, who owns Zimmer Welding and is the registered agent for Dilbone Properties LLC, was not immediately returned on Tuesday morning.
In the past decade, the zoo has seen substantial growth of its wildlife and educational offerings, with the addition of dedicated exhibit areas for orangutans, kangaroos and, most recently, chimpanzees.
The chimpanzee space features enclosures, trails and research areas that interface with two-thirds of the zoo—part of a $53 million capital campaign publicly announced in December 2022. The International Chimpanzee Complex, home to 21 chimps, opened in May 2024.
That campaign also included the establishment of a research center focused on preservation of endangered species populations and a new welcome center.
In 2019, the zoo acquired an additional 28 acres south of its current boundaries, opposite Washington Street and the CSX railroad tracks that slice through the city’s near west-side neighborhoods. The acreage at least in part was within the bounds of the former General Motors stamping plant site. Now, the land is being used for overflow parking.
Since 1999, the Indianapolis Zoo has raised more than $124 million as part of four major fundraising campaigns focused on expansion and the development of new programming and initiatives.
The first was a $10 million campaign that started in 1999 and led to an African elephant preserve as well as new exhibits for snakes and jellyfish.
The first phase of the Campaign for Conservation and Community—which led to creation of the Indianapolis Prize, the Oceans exhibit and the dolphin pavilion—raised $31.1 million from 2003 to 2006.
The second phase of that campaign—which ran from 2011 to 2014—raised $30 million that funded the orangutan exhibit, entrance renovations and the tigers and lions exhibits.
And from 2014 to 2022, the zoo spent another $20 million on nine new spaces, including the Bicentennial Pavilion near the park’s entrance ($10 million) in 2017, the elephant camp ($1.27 million) in 2020, and most recently, Kangaroo Crossing ($2.2 million) in 2022.
But for now, Oakman said, there’s little focus on what comes next and instead a desire to focus on making the current offerings best-in-class.
“We’re really enjoying the moment, both with the orangutan center and chimpanzee spaces,” he said in a call with IBJ. “They’re both blockbuster exhibits that have opened in the past 10 years, and we’re still enjoying the glow of the new chimpanzee exhibit, in particular. We’ve had no further discussions about what the next big thing might be.”
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Yes
If the zoo ever were to expand, the area bounded by the rail line, ohio st, white river parkway, and washington street is the logical area to do so. Almost entirely low density commercial / industrial / parking lots and a nonhistoric church building. No real loss to the city
Could there be a plan to make the new properties contiguous with the current zoo property by moving the White River Parkway to the west and have the intersection with Washington St. to connect with Harding Street? That would make a lot of sense although the current Speedway station would obviously be in the way.